Articles in this issue: 1. "An Open Letter to President Fuhrman," Students of TC 2. "A Response to Provocation," Aaron Barksdale 3. "Inscribing Racial Justice: Black Lives, Literacy, and the Pedagogy of Racial Politics," Jamila Lyiscott 4. "A Discussion about the Role of Police," Matt Gonzales 5. "Absenteeism and Poverty," Dakota Cintron 6. "Recommendations to Improve TC Synergy," Maria Guo 7. "A Silenced Senegal," Nicole Elaine Avery 8. "Peace Education Reflections," Kamiya Kumar
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By Aaron Barksdale Art Ed MA '15 My experience as a gendered and racial being, a black male, has been heightened in the recent police killings of other black men. In a lecture at The New School, bell hooks referred to these deaths as “contemporary lynchings.” She goes on to say that the historical point of such a practice is, “not to kill individuals but to let everybody know: ‘This is what can happen to you.’” I’ve been ruminating on this idea of whether or not this could happen to me. What is it about my identity as a black male that makes me vulnerable, voiceless, and a threat to the white- supremacist hierarchy of police brutality and the judicial system? I include both the police and the courts together because their decisions are an act of collusion to enforce and affirm the racist ideology that targeted Mike Brown, John Crawford, Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Danroy Henry. When I reflect on my intersections of identity as a student at an Ivy League university, a teacher, and someone who also happens to be black and male I wonder: “Could this happen to me?” John Crawford was a father as was Eric Garner. Trayvon Martin and Tamir Rice were children, and both of them are near the age of students in my classroom. Danroy Henry was only two years older than me, and Mike Brown was five years my junior. Although I didn’t know them, I assume that each of them had ambitions, interests and plans for a future, all which were cut much too short. Is there anything that makes me more or less vulnerable to the racist attitudes of someone who has been conditioned to feel prejudice towards people who look like me? Community through dialogue, discussion, and dissent. tcpublicspace.wordpress.com Volume II, Issue 4 Monday, February, 2, 2015 By Students of TC We have initiated several student-led events to find community within a campus that lacks diversity across several domains: in curriculum and underrepresented minority faculty and students. Our most recent die-in was planned in solidarity for Mike Brown and Eric Garner, and the letter was written as part of a collaborative agenda during our first forum titled "Next Steps: #MikeBrown and #EricGarner," incorporating suggestions and concerns of the student attendees. These #NextSteps are just a few of the many examples to support a movement that is bigger than ourselves. Greetings President Fuhrman, For the past few weeks we, the students of Teachers College and signatories of this letter, have been in a state of suffering, confusion and disappointment. In that time, we have initiated several student-led events to find community with one another, bonding together around our shared desire and commitment to fight with and for our community toward true diversity. We have been frustrated by the lack of institutional reflection about racial inequality at TC and saddened that few faculty members have expressed an interest in discussing how issues of race permeate the work we aspire to do and the institution we attend. In recent weeks, we have had no choice but to take responsibility as students and educators to come together in hope, in faith, and in purposefulness to address these issues of inequality at TC and in America. We would like to thank you for your participation in Tuesday’s “die-in,” one example of the myriad ways the TC Community is coming together to support a movement bigger than ourselves. This fight is against the larger systems that continue to marginalize and discriminate, to burden and discomfort, and to withhold and disadvantage certain groups. This is why we can’t breathe, and why our fight will not end with this letter. Below you will find what we, as students of Teachers College, believe are important issues that must be addressed. If we may, and if your schedule permits, we would love to schedule a time with you to discuss our six student requests to promote the TC mission of social justice on campus. Please note that these topics have been developed as a collective effort on behalf of all students of Teachers College. 1. Issue a formal public statement from President Fuhrman to the TC Community regarding recent instances of police brutality and racial injustice in our country. continued on page 3 By Jamila Lyiscott Advanced Doctoral Candidate Graduate Research Fellow Institute for Urban and Minority Education Teachers College, Columbia University The recurring articulation that “Black Lives Matter” throughout the 2014 social upheaval sparked by the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO is an indictment on the United States of America at large. The urgency of chanting, screaming, branding, and making viral this fundamental truth means simply that as a nation we have lived beneath the standard of this truth in policy, practice, procedure, and in everyday human interaction across disciplines. As we chant throughout the streets of Fergusons across the country, and engage in the development and execution of both immediate and sustainable action in response to the lawful disposability and abuses against Black bodies, we do so to inscribe this powerful truth across ideological, discursive, institutional, and virtual landscapes. This inscription serves as a counter-hegemonic stance against the reality that white middle-class values and interests still serve as the substance of dominant culture, leaving little-to-no room for the values, ways of knowing, cultures, and practices of others, unless co-opted, of course. This inscription seeks to rewrite the dangerous single story (Adiche, 2009) that historically stigmatizes Blackness to death (literally) throughout the African Diaspora. And so it exposes the need to center the already existing voices of Black people on Blackness and for new and safer stories that write Black lives into the narrative of humanity in rightful and righteous ways that are long overdue. When juxtaposed with the reality of a predominantly white and monolingual teaching force (Zumwalt & Craig, 2008), and an increasing racially, culturally, and linguistically diverse student population (Aud et al., 2012; Kinloch, 2009; Paris, 2012), we are forced to address the complicity of our systems of education in (re)producing the social realities at the heart of our Ferguson revolution. We simply cannot have an honest conversation about the disposability of Black bodies within our justice system without a parallel conversation on the disposability and marginalization of Blackness within our classrooms, where a deep education debt exists (Ladson-Billings, 2006). Our spaces of English education in particular, where language and literature and narrative and story are meaningfully engaged, are spaces where inscribing the worth of Blackness have a particular bearing. When Toni Morrison stated, “National literature reflects what’s on the national mind,” she invited us to acknowledge the enmeshed relationship between our world and the words that exist within the literary landscape—a landscape of language and narrative and story. And since the racially charged political climate of our world today cannot be teased out from the realities that our students bring into our classrooms, it is our duty and charge as educators of the word to pedagogically engage these realities on the classroom level. How do the literary works within our classrooms draw on, build on, and address the 2015 racial politics on our national mind? And where have we failed in these same classrooms to ensure the fundamental worth of Black life? A deeper understanding of this relationship between racial justice and literacy education is crucial in the face of a staggering disconnect between the complex literate continued on page 2 A Response to a Provocation Inscribing Racial Justice: Black Lives, Literacy, and the Pedagogy of Racial Politics An Open Letter to President Fuhrman 2. Create a multicultural center on campus, separate from the office of Diversity and Community, to allow students of disparate backgrounds a physical space to engage with and learn from one another in an informal setting. 3. Increase transparency around Teachers College efforts to support and retain a diverse faculty and create a formal reporting system through which students, faculty, and alumni can monitor institutional progress. Encourage faculty members to be innovative in addressing such issues in a wider range of courses and ensure they are equipped with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to conduct difficult conversations in class. 4. Mandate that all departments require students take at least one course on multicultural, social justice, or race class and gender issues, and disseminate and publicize a list of classes on these issues to the TC community. continued on page 3
Transcript
By Aaron BarksdaleArt Ed MA '15
My experience as a gendered and racial being,a black male, has been heightened in the recent policekillings of other black men. In a lecture at The NewSchool, bell hooks referred to these deaths as“contemporary lynchings.” She goes on to say thatthe historical point of such a practice is, “not to killindividuals but to let everybody know: ‘This is whatcan happen to you.’” I’ve been ruminating on thisidea of whether or not this could happen to me. Whatis it about my identity as a black male that makes mevulnerable, voiceless, and a threat to the white-supremacist hierarchy of police brutality and thejudicial system? I include both the police and thecourts together because their decisions are an act ofcollusion to enforce and affirm the racist ideologythat targeted Mike Brown, John Crawford, EricGarner, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Danroy Henry.
When I reflect on my intersections of identityas a student at an Ivy League university, a teacher,and someone who also happens to be black and maleI wonder: “Could this happen to me?” John Crawfordwas a father as was Eric Garner. Trayvon Martin andTamir Rice were children, and both of them are nearthe age of students in my classroom. Danroy Henrywas only two years older than me, and Mike Brownwas five years my junior. Although I didn’t knowthem, I assume that each of them had ambitions,interests and plans for a future, all which were cutmuch too short.
Is there anything that makes me more or lessvulnerable to the racist attitudes of someone who hasbeen conditioned to feel prejudice towards peoplewho look like me?
Community throughdialogue, discussion,
and dissent.tcpublicspace.wordpress.com
Volume II, Issue 4 Monday, February, 2, 2015
By Students of TCWe have initiated several student-led events to findcommunity within a campus that lacks diversity acrossseveral domains: in curriculum and underrepresentedminority faculty and students. Our most recent die-inwas planned in solidarity for Mike Brown and EricGarner, and the letter was written as part of acollaborative agenda during our first forum titled "NextSteps: #MikeBrown and #EricGarner," incorporatingsuggestions and concerns of the student attendees.These #NextSteps are just a few of the many examplesto support a movement that is bigger than ourselves.
Greetings President Fuhrman,
For the past few weeks we, the students ofTeachers College and signatories of this letter, havebeen in a state of suffering, confusion anddisappointment. In that time, we have initiated severalstudent-led events to find community with one another,bonding together around our shared desire andcommitment to fight with and for our communitytoward true diversity.
We have been frustrated by the lack ofinstitutional reflection about racial inequality at TC andsaddened that few faculty members have expressed aninterest in discussing how issues of race permeate thework we aspire to do and the institution we attend. Inrecent weeks, we have had no choice but to takeresponsibility as students and educators to cometogether in hope, in faith, and in purposefulness toaddress these issues of inequality at TC and in America.
We would like to thank you for your participation inTuesday’s “die-in,” one example of the myriad ways the TCCommunity is coming together to support a movement biggerthan ourselves. This fight is against the larger systems thatcontinue to marginalize and discriminate, to burden anddiscomfort, and to withhold and disadvantage certain groups.This is why we can’t breathe, and why our fight will not endwith this letter.
Below you will find what we, as students of TeachersCollege, believe are important issues that must be addressed.If we may, and if your schedule permits, we would love toschedule a time with you to discuss our six student requeststo promote the TC mission of social justice on campus.Please note that these topics have been developed as acollective effort on behalf of all students of Teachers College.
1. Issue a formal public statement from President Fuhrman tothe TC Community regarding recent instances of policebrutality and racial injustice in our country.
continued on page 3
By Jamila LyiscottAdvanced Doctoral CandidateGraduate Research Fellow
Institute for Urban and Minority EducationTeachers College, Columbia University
The recurring articulation that “Black LivesMatter” throughout the 2014 social upheaval sparked bythe death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO is anindictment on the United States of America at large. Theurgency of chanting, screaming, branding, and makingviral this fundamental truth means simply that as anation we have lived beneath the standard of this truthin policy, practice, procedure, and in everyday humaninteraction across disciplines. As we chant throughoutthe streets of Fergusons across the country, and engagein the development and execution of both immediateand sustainable action in response to the lawfuldisposability and abuses against Black bodies, we do soto inscribe this powerful truth across ideological,discursive, institutional, and virtual landscapes. Thisinscription serves as a counter-hegemonic stance againstthe reality that white middle-class values and interestsstill serve as the substance of dominant culture, leavinglittle-to-no room for the values, ways of knowing,cultures, and practices of others, unless co-opted, ofcourse. This inscription seeks to rewrite the dangeroussingle story (Adiche, 2009) that historically stigmatizesBlackness to death (literally) throughout the AfricanDiaspora. And so it exposes the need to center thealready existing voices
of Black people on Blackness and for new and safer storiesthat write Black lives into the narrative of humanity inrightful and righteous ways that are long overdue.
When juxtaposed with the reality of a predominantlywhite and monolingual teaching force (Zumwalt & Craig,2008), and an increasing racially, culturally, andlinguistically diverse student population (Aud et al., 2012;Kinloch, 2009; Paris, 2012), we are forced to address thecomplicity of our systems of education in (re)producing thesocial realities at the heart of our Ferguson revolution. Wesimply cannot have an honest conversation about thedisposability of Black bodies within our justice systemwithout a parallel conversation on the disposability andmarginalization of Blackness within our classrooms, wherea deep education debt exists (Ladson-Billings, 2006).
Our spaces of English education in particular, wherelanguage and literature and narrative and story aremeaningfully engaged, are spaces where inscribing theworth of Blackness have a particular bearing. When ToniMorrison stated, “National literature reflects what’s on thenational mind,” she invited us to acknowledge theenmeshed relationship between our world and the wordsthat exist within the literary landscape—a landscape oflanguage and narrative and story. And since the raciallycharged political climate of our world today cannot beteased out from the realities that our students bring into ourclassrooms, it is our duty and charge as educators of theword to pedagogically engage these realities on theclassroom level. How do the literary works within ourclassrooms draw on, build on, and address the 2015 racialpolitics on our national mind? And where have we failed inthese same classrooms to ensure the fundamental worth ofBlack life?
A deeper understanding of this relationship betweenracial justice and literacy education is crucial in the face ofa staggering disconnect between the complex literate
continued on page 2
A Response to aProvocation
Inscribing Racial Justice:Black Lives, Literacy,
and the Pedagogy ofRacial Politics
An Open Letter toPresident Fuhrman
2. Create a multicultural center on campus, separate fromthe office of Diversity and Community, to allow studentsof disparate backgrounds a physical space to engage withand learn from one another in an informal setting.
3. Increase transparency around Teachers College effortsto support and retain a diverse faculty and create a formalreporting system through which students, faculty, andalumni can monitor institutional progress. Encouragefaculty members to be innovative in addressing suchissues in a wider range of courses and ensure they areequipped with the knowledge, skills, and confidence toconduct difficult conversations in class.
4. Mandate that all departments require students take atleast one course on multicultural, social justice, or raceclass and gender issues, and disseminate and publicize alist of classes on these issues to the TC community.
continued on page 3
TC PUBLIC SPACE Page 2tcpublicspace.wordpress.com
Inscribing Racial Justice:Black Lives, Literacy, and thePedagogy of Racial Politics
continued from page 1
identities of Black youth and their performance on StandardEnglish assessments (Alim 2011; Kirkland 2013; Smitherman2000). Failure to question the pedagogy that sustains thisdisconnect and the increasing racial, cultural, and linguisticdisconnect between students and teachers only serves toperpetuate racial inequality both within and outside of oursystems of education. For Literacy/English educators concernedwith the “moral, constitutional and political imperative ofequality,” we must undertake the work that interrogates thepedagogy of racial politics as well as the racial politics embeddedin the pedagogies of Literacy/English education. If Black livesmatter (or don’t matter) on the streets of Ferguson, do they matterin our classrooms? If Black lives matter in our classrooms, thenwhy is there a nation-wide urgency to inscribe this truth into thediscursive landscape of our present reality?
Works Cited:Adiche, C. (2009, Oct. 7). The Danger of a Single Story. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg.Alim, H. (2011) “Global Ill-Literacies: Hip Hop Cultures, Youth Identities, and
the Politics of Literacy,” Review of Research in Education, 35, 120-146.Aud, S., Hussar, W., Johnson, F., Kena, G., Roth, E., Manning, E., Wang, X., and
Zhang, J. (2012). The Condition of Education 2012 (NCES 2012-045). U.S.Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.Washington, DC. Retrieved April 15th, 2013, http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch.
Costigan, A.T. (2008). Canaries in the coal mine: Urban rookies learning to teachlanguage arts in “high priority” schools. Teacher Education Quarterly, Spring,85-103.
Gordon, E. W., Bridglall, B. L. & Meroe, A. S. (Eds.). (2005). Supplementaryeducation: The hidden curriculum of high academic achievement. Boulder, CO:Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc
Kinloch, Valerie F. (2009). Harlem on our minds: Place, race, and the literacies ofurban youth. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Kirkland, David. (2013). A Search Past Silence: The Literacy of Young BlackMen. New York: Teachers College Press.
Ladson-Billings, G. (2006). From the Achievement Gap to the Education Debt:Understanding Achievement in U.S. Schools. Educational Researcher, 35(7), 3-12.
Paris, D. (2012). Culturally sustaining pedagogy: A needed change in stance,terminology, and practice. Educational Researcher, 41(3), 93-97. doi:10.3102/0013189X12441244.
Smitherman, Geneva. (2000) Talking that Talk: Language, Culture, and Educationin African America. New York: Routledge.
Tanner, D. (2013). Race to the top and leave the children behind. Journal ofCurriculum Studies, 45(1), 4-15.
Zumwalt, K., & Craig, E. (2008). Who is teaching? Does it matter? In M.Cochran-Smith, S. Feiman-Nemser and J. McIntyre (Eds.), Handbook ofresearch on teacher education: Enduring questions in changing contexts (3rded., pp. 404-423). New York, NY: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group and theAssociation of Teacher Educators.
A Discussion about the Role of PoliceMatt Gonzales
Matt Gonzales is a MA student of Education Policy at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is aformer special education teacher for the Los Angeles Unified School District, and a longtime activist. Hecurrently works at the New York Department of Education in the Teacher Recruitment and Quality Office.
The recent killings of Michael Brown and Eric Garner at the hands of the police, (along with TamirRice, Cameron Tillman, VonDerrit Meyers Jr., Laquan McDonald, Carey Smith-Viramontes, JeffreyHolden, Qusean Whitten, Miguel Benton, Dillon McGee, Levi Weaver, Karen Cifuentes, Sergrio Ramos,Roshad McIntosh, and Diana Showman) and the subsequent decisions by grand juries not to indict thosepolice officers have raised many complex and divisive issues surrounding race and law enforcement in thiscountry.
I first want to note that these cases are nothing new. These are the most recent, televised examples ofviolence towards people of color by the police; this type of behavior towards communities of color is widelydocumented. It is part and parcel of a hegemonic social structure that has been working against people ofcolor in this country for generations.
I have decided to stray away from my regular focus of education to consider the role of police as a toolof racial and economic oppression. Actually, I have been compelled by the recent protests in New York, thedeaths of two cops in Brooklyn, and the response by New York Police.
All December the BlackLivesMatter protests in New York and around the country have been clearexamples of the frustration felt by the poor and communities of color. The public response to the killings ofMike Brown and Eric Garner highlight a growing concern about the behavior of police towards black andbrown communities, as well as the militarization of police forces all over the country.
In December, a mentally unstable man gunned down two NYPD officers. The coverage of this by themainstream media was, as per usual, callous, thoughtless, and misinformed. The gunman was immediatelyconnected to the #Blacklivesmatter movement because of an Instagram post, and the movement, along withMayor de Blasio (having recently given acknowledgement to the concerns of the protests) was widelycondemned.
Patrick Lynch, president of the largest police union, immediately blamed Mayor de Blasio and theprotesters as having “blood on their hands”. He also led a silent protest against the mayor, calling for officersto turn their backs to the mayor in protest at the funerals of the slain officers and began an unofficial “workslowdown.”
The recent slowdown in New York has had a significant economic impact. Criminal summonses andtraffic tickets are down more than 90 percent, the $10.5 million a week of revenue from parking tickets isnot being generated, costing the city over $46 million in lost revenue. What is most interesting is that thisslowdown has decreased many of the broken windows types of policing that has disproportionately impactedpoor, non-white communities.
This apparent political and economic protest by the NYPD raises questions about the necessity ofpolice in our society, and the role they should play in the future. During this “slowdown”, New York has noterupted into chaos. There will undoubtedly be some crimes, but the city moves on. This point would seem tocounter the argument that our current police regime is necessary to keep us from killing each other. Thepolice union's attempt to utilize its economic tools to make a point seems to be proving the opposite. It isexposing the role of police being used as an economic tool to generate revenue from the public. It is alsoexposing the disproportionate impact excessive crackdowns of low-level crimes impact communities ofcolor.
Perhaps a more meaningful discussion about race and policing should consider the sources that createcrime. We must ask how crime manifests in certain communities and look at the social and structuralpatterns that influence that crime. Many on the Right make the argument that high crime rates incommunities of color are a result of poor cultural patterns, failing families, and economic hardship. Theyutilize a social learning theory or a social disorganization theory, both of which fail to consider the historicaloppression that has influenced certain communities. I find that critical theories like Marxism and Feminismprovide very thoughtful explanations for the manifestations of crime. They would argue that crime is aresponse to some form of economic, racial, gender or social oppression. It has largely to do with therelationships of power that exist between the police and the justice system.
From these critical theorists' lenses, there is a clear historical context of disproportionate treatment ofcommunities of color by the political and legal system. We must consider how the role of historical housingsegregation and control has created communities of concentrated poverty, along with the various other directand indirect institutional forms of discrimination. Whether it be higher rates of black and brown studentsuspension or discipline in education, or the lack of true political representation in Ferguson, racism is aliveand well. If you don’t believe this, I suggest you log in to your favorite social media or news site and scrolldown to the comments section. You will see a nasty debate about race and racism happening from behindscreens.
We must bring these discussions out into the open. We must expose racist and white supremacistideologies in our communities, our schools, and especially within ourselves. Only with meaningful dialoguecan we peel back the layers of this onion. Many tears will be shed, but it is time for our generation to takecontrol of this discussion. The onion is in your hands.
Absenteeism and PovertyBy Dakota Cintron
On November 6, 2014 the Center for New York CityAffairs (CNYCA) released the 72 page report, A Better Pictureof Poverty: What Chronic Absenteeism and Risk Load RevealAbout NYC’s Lowest-Income Elementary Schools. The 2014CNYCA report is an update and refinement of the agency'spioneering 2008 report on chronic absenteeism. The 2008 reportrevealed that one in every five elementary school students in thecity (roughly 90,000 children) were chronically absent fromschool. Chronic absence was defined as missing a month ormore of school throughout the academic year. The 2008 reportwas a linchpin in the development of the Bloombergadministration’s three-year Interagency Task Force on Truancy,Chronic Absenteeism, and School Engagement; and in reducingthe number of chronic absentees in elementary school from 23percent in 2009 to 19 percent in 2013.
While the above findings are encouraging, and signalpositive change, the 2014 CNYCA report finds that the numberof chronically absent elementary students is still roughly one infive. In their 2014 report, to better understand the role ofabsenteeism in schools, the CNYCA endeavored tocontextualize the facets of schools experiencing chronicabsenteeism. A major finding of the CNYCA’s effort was theidentification of nearly 130 schools, of the 748 elementary andK to 8 schools they studied, that persistently deal with chronicabsenteeism. The center defines persistent chronic absenteeismas, that, on average, one-third or more of students in thoseschools were chronically absent (missing a month or more ofschool throughout the academic year) over the course of fiveyears. That 130 elementary and K to 8 schools are dealing withpersistent chronic absenteeism alone is disconcerting. However,that number is not the most alarming finding from the 2014report.
continued on page 4
In the report, the Center conducted a “risk analysis”using 18 of what they call risk load factors (see Figure1, on page 4). The analysis found that schools dealingwith persistent chronic absenteeism were often inlocated in communities with a high prevalence of:student transience and homelessness; health issues;mental health issues; family issues; high rates ofstudents with families in temporary housing; high ratesof families accepting some form of welfare provisions;greater numbers of homeless shelters and publichousing complexes in their catchment; and/or highnumbers of child maltreatment. The aforementionedissues are typical indicators of the presence of deeppoverty and exhibit the “truly disadvantaged” nature ofschools dealing with persistent chronic absenteeism.The “risk load,” or number of detrimental community
factors, a school copes with varies from school toschool but nonetheless is positively correlated withpersistent chronic absenteeism.
The disadvantage of the communities in whichpersistent chronic absenteeism schools preside,presents a myriad of challenges that schooladministrators and education leaders must be aware ofin order to help their students and schools. As outlinedabove, the schools dealing with persistent chronicabsenteeism also deal with the multi-faceted aspectsof deep poverty. In addressing these issues,administrators and education leaders must developsolutions that are multidimensional and incorporatemultiple supports for parents, their children, andschools (i.e. preventative care, mental health care,welfare provisions, educational continued on page 4
TC PUBLIC SPACE Page 3
A Response to a Provocationcontinued from page 1
Unfortunately, I am left with more questions than answers, which permeate mythoughts and influence my actions. For instance, when and where can I feel safe? Isthere something about my appearance or clothing that may suggest criminality? ShouldI cross the street or move to the next subway car if I am in the vicinity of police officer—especially if he is white? Does my cautionary behavior make me seem moresuspicious, and will it make them notice me more?
At Teachers College as a student in the Art & Art Education program I haveexplored these issues concerning gendered and racial identity in both my teachingpedagogy and my personal artwork. When I contemplate the recent events surroundingthe deaths of other black men I try to remain hopeful because I know that my blackexperience is more meaningful than tragedy. For those committed to inciting socialchange there are different paths laid before us. I see my more dissident peers taking tothe streets and marching, protesting, and becoming involved in radical activism. Iadmire them for their bravery and commitment to a movement sparking criticalconsciousness on race and gender.
However, my path is different. It may be quieter, but is now less subtle. Throughmy artwork I transcend feelings of victimhood and misery that come with being a blackmale. Last spring I did a multimedia performance piece in which I went around TimesSquare and Chelsea showing people a photograph of an infant. The photograph was ofa black child, but the gender was not discernable. I asked the people if I could recordtheir response to the following statement: “When this child is older…” No one said thatwhen this child is older the police could shoot him.
The infant in the photograph that people reacted to was actually a photograph ofme, although I did not reveal that to the participants to gain their honest opinion. Tohear others, mainly white, talk about what they thought my future could be brings meback to deaths of Brown, Crawford, Garner, Martin, Rice, and Henry, whose deathswere determined at the hands of white men. One statement from the performance, fromanother black male, feels particularly true to maintain hope: “When this child is olderhe’ll have lots of obstacles that he will have to face, so he’ll have to be tough totriumph.”
SUBMISSIONSHave a response article to write? A letter to the editor? An
opinion you'd like to share with the TC community? A report orinterview you'd like to see in the paper?
Art to share?
TC Public Space is always open to a variety of submissions.Email us! [email protected]
An Open Letter to President Fuhrmancontinued from page 1
5. Increase transparency around efforts to identify, recruit and incentivize historicallymarginalized minority students to pursue their graduate education at TeachersCollege as well as how Teachers College financial aid is allocated. Create a formalreporting system through which students, faculty, and alumni can monitorinstitutional progress.
6. Expand community partnership programs, draw on the expertise of faculty todevelop and maintain relationships with organizations in Harlem and create a systemto promote student-led partnerships.
As you laid on the floor in the Main Hall of Zankel this past Tuesday with us,the TC Community, our Community, we are reminded that we will continue to needyour support and solidarity in the long days and months ahead. No community cansustain itself without progress, without addressing the barriers that continue to treatsome better than others. We will continue to struggle until there is progress, and wehope to see you again on this journey.
For more information or to sign the above letter, visithttp://tconlinespace.weebly.com/open-letter-to-president-fuhrman.html or feel free toemail [email protected]
Recommendations to Improve TCSynergy
By Maria GuoMA Candidate in Education Policy, EPSA
The Education Policy and Social Analysis (EPSA) department hosted its annualOpen House reception program on November 14th. The goal of this Open House isto give prospective students an opportunity to connect with current students andfaculty and learn more about our programs. Over 60 students RSVP’d for the eventand the turnout was quite positive. About 20 or 30 prospective students joined towine and dine. This open house is one of our few formal events where students fromall four programs within the EPSA department unite and enjoy each other’scompany. There was only one problem: because current students were eager to catchup with each other and learn more about each other’s backgrounds, only a fewprospective students got to mingle with current students. This may have resultedfrom the unfortunate reality that current students have had so few opportunities toconnect and share their stories.
Other than Student Senate’s dining hall parties, very few formal programsbring students from all of TC’s ten departments together under one roof. Here aresome of my recommendations to create more structured collaboration to unite ourdiverse TC programs:
1. Create a “speed networking” event for current students. This event will havetwo components. The first part is a structured speed networking where each studenthas five minutes to share his or her story of why the student chose TC. The secondhalf is open reception so students can talk to others whom they had just met andfurther their conversations. This is a good format because it encourages continuedinteraction with contacts made during speed networking, in lieu of clinging topeople whom they already know at departmental socials.
2. Organize an end-of-year departmental exhibit or showcase where students candemonstrate their master’s thesis, project, or doctoral dissertation work. This can bea weeklong celebration where we feature students’ work from two departments eachday. Based on students’ availability, we can either seek student volunteers or createa selection process where students submit an application in order to showcase theirwork.
3. Establish a TC faculty speaker series. Each department could feature a facultymember to speak on his or her research in a panel format where students can betterinteract with our faculty and other fellow students.
Of course, my recommendations above are by no means intended to discreditany existing efforts in creating more cross-departmental collaboration. For example,my department already initiated a new policy popup last year to bring studentstogether from all four programs within EPSA. I only wish to supplement and supportthe strive for more cross-departmental learning. If other departments already havegood models to create more collaboration within TC, we should learn from eachother and foster a friendlier space for current students.
Disclaimer:TC Public Space is a forum for the TC community. Published contentdoes not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editorial board or
Teachers College.
funding, etc.). One potential multidimensional solution to address each group's needsmay be found in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Community Schools initiative. With a roughly$52 million backing, United Way will captain the roll out of approximately 45 newCommunity Schools, all of which have to ascribe to the goal of reducing persistentchronic absenteeism. What makes the Community Schools approach appealing is thefocus on layering health, job, and social supports for families in the school'scommunity. While providing a meaningful education for children, the CommunitySchool doubles as a resource for struggling families. The one caveat, however, with theCommunity Schools approach, is a matter of equity. Although the Community Schoolfocus is on schools that have higher than average levels of absenteeism, in order to beeligible for a Community School the school must submit a request for proposal. Theproposal process is a method to ensure that the schools that are most capable ofhandling the transition to a Community School are the ones selected. Unfortunately,the schools who are most at need for the Community School supports may not receivethem. The reason they may not receive this support is because many of these schoolsare already inundated with the crippling challenges of poverty that most likely will notallow them the time, energy, or organizational capacity to write meaningful proposalsor manage grants. Moreover, there is simply not enough money to go around.
To encourage the selection of truly disadvantaged schools, educationpolicymakers should consider depth of persistent chronic absenteeism as an indicatorfor Community School eligibility. Similarly, education policymakers and advocatescan help support the tracking of poverty in different schools. This may helpindividualize school supports by using disaggregated data that connects not just toschool or student indicators, but to the wider resources and economic statuses of thecommunity. The narrowed focus hopefully will enable education policymakers andadvocates to make the beneficial changes they wish to see.
The entire report by Nauer et al. (2014) can be found athttp://www.newschool.edu/milano/nycaffairs/ABetterPictureofPoverty.aspx ,or by Googling “better picture poverty.”
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A Silenced Senegal
By Nicole Elaine Avery
Paralyzed by unforgettable echoes and unimaginable shrieks,Engulfed by high pitched octaves uttered in choral,Each shrill more piercing than its predecessor,Silenced Voices… Swallowing the space and my spirit,
The rising stench of re-dampened feces concocted with limbs drowning in murky morassreality engender the ambivalence,Daunting shadows of apparitions appear,Beget by a single light source…
A tiny opening sources this makeshift housing, where series of hands cloud my vision,I attempt to reprieve,Weary decomposed limbs emerge from the self-same dawn grasping hold my calf; a gripfrom beyond the grave,
A babbling baby calls to its mother only to be cared for by a stranger’s child,A young virgin girl dragged by her violent assailants,Amidst her screams of terror and floor burn, she braces herself,Exiting in dignity,Returning tarnished goods,
Greater terror befalls the fall of night as silenced screams plunge into the sea.
Devoid warning, the tour guide inquires, “Are you, okay?”
By Kamiya KumarFrom the lens of peace education, I
often struggle with what does peace educationlook like in schools? Does it mean teachingabout the concepts of war and peace? Could itmean realigning certain structures andsystems so that structural violence iscontested? Or could it also mean building asense of awareness and ability to reflectwithin students so that they commencethinking about their feelings and actionsespecially in relation to others?
In my current school, I have initiatedmindfulness sessions with students of GradeTwo. It has been an extremely fascinatingprocess to design these sessions and evenmore intriguing to see how students respond.We began with the concept of simple vacuumcleaning breaths, where I introduced them tobreathing with awareness. It was interesting tosee how a few students began to hum withtheir eyes closed. On asking why they weredoing that, they shared that they had seenpeople meditate while humming. So westarted alternating with a few sessions ofvacuum cleaning breaths and hummingmediation where they could focus on listeningintently to their own humming sounds. Wediscussed in a group what mindfulness meantto them. They said that they had heard of itbefore but weren’t quite sure of what itexactly meant.
Further sessions involved buildingfocus and concentration by listening to thelasting sound of a bell. Additionally, as weproceeded I introduced the concept of ananchor by showing them a balloon with astring, which indicated that even if it waswindy the balloon could not fly away if wewere holding on to the string. The analogywas drawn to ones concentration, which couldbe brought back with mindful
breathing if one got distracted. I showed them avideo of students in different schools across NewYork who were also engaged with mindfulnessand their thoughts on whether they found itvaluable. After the screening of the video, thestudents discussed what they thought wasinteresting about what they had seen. Theyexpressed wanting to visit those schools to learnmore about the practices.
As we progressed, I facilitated discussionsaround what their happy places were and they alldrew pictures of what made them happy. Anambit of ideas were shared and illustrated, suchas Chuck E. Cheese's, the beach, The AmericanMuseum of Natural History, dreaming, books,Sky Zone, family, and friends, to name a few.These post-its were pasted across the class sothat instead of a peace corner, the entire classwas being enveloped in peace and happy places.An observation I had while conducting theseclasses was that it was important to ‘talk’ aboutfeelings and emotions such as anger, sadness,loneliness and what they did when they had thesefeelings. Even though it wasn’t clear whatexactly their coping techniques were, throughdiscussion I tried to reiterate the significance ofsharing and talking about it. My aim is to makean underlying connection of how an awarenessof one’s own feelings can help in relating to thefeelings of others.
As I continue these sessions, I am learningso much in the process and intend to design thesessions on what students may find mostvaluable. I am not entirely sure whether any ofthis is really being internalized, but I lookforward to ongoing feedback from the studentsin case these sessions impact them positively. Inthe event, if you, the reader, have anysuggestions or thoughts, I would love to hearfrom you!
EdM Candidate in Curriculum and Teaching ’15Email: [email protected]
Peace Education Reflections
Absenteeism and Povertycontinued from page 2
SCHOOL FACTORS:
1. Students eligible for free lunch2. Students known to be in temporary housing3. Students eligible for welfare benefits from theHuman ResourcesAdministration4. Special education students 5. Black or Hispanicstudents6. Principal turnover7. Teacher turnover8. Student turnover9. Student suspensions10. Safety score on the Learning EnvironmentSurvey11. Engagement score on the LearningEnvironment Survey
10. Safety score on the Learning Environment Survey11. Engagement score on the Learning EnvironmentSurvey
NEIGHBORHOOD FACTORS:
12. Involvement with the Administration for Children’sServices13. Poverty rate14. Adult education levels15. Professional employment16. Male unemployment17. Presence of public housing in a school’s catchment18. Presence of a homeless shelter in a school’s catchment
(source: Nauer et al, 2014)
Figure 1. Risk Load Factors:
While a participant of West African dance classes in Senegal, West Africa inJanuary 2011, I journeyed to Goree Island, a small island off the coast of the mainlandwhere freed Africans from countries such as Nigeria, Senegal, The Gambia and otherCentral/West African Nations were invited against their will to be held captive, raped,beaten, and stripped of their cultural identity. Then, they were shipped as chattel acrossthe Atlantic to the good ‘ole US of A.
As I stood in the tiny coves where many of my ancestors were kept, I noticed the
tiny hole in the wall of the cove affording inadequate lighting. I stood atop the oncedampened floors used for slumber amidst the constant urination and feces and crampedspacing filled by insurmountable numbers of individuals. I couldn’t help but to imaginethe torture they endured, only allowed to leave the space once daily for food/bathroomprivileges/family visits, children living in separate quarters from their parents, virginwomen separated from the other women, incapable of communicating due to thenumerous languages spoken.
Men who fought to free themselves and their families were murdered, stolenduring the night and thrown into the treacherous waters. Children, who were thebyproduct of sexually abused captives, were raised on the island and not allowed to setsail. The oldest women were sometimes left behind as well to care for these children.Those Africans who did survive the ordeal from Goree Island to America’s shores andthe terror of slavery helped to make me who I am: an African-Jamaican-American. I amgrateful for their strength, their intelligence and their untiring will.
Figure 1. Risk Load Factors:
SCHOOL FACTORS:
1. Students eligible for free lunch2. Students known to be in temporary housing3. Students eligible for welfare benefits from theHuman Resources Administration4. Special education students5. Black or Hispanic students6. Principal turnover7. Teacher turnover8. Student turnover9. Student suspensions10. Safety score on the Learning EnvironmentSurvey11. Engagement score on the Learning EnvironmentSurvey
NEIGHBORHOOD FACTORS:
12. Involvement with the Administration forChildren’s Services13. Poverty rate14. Adult education levels15. Professional employment16. Male unemployment17. Presence of public housing in a school’scatchment18. Presence of a homeless shelter in a school’scatchment
